Animal Abuse Group

Don't forget to write HERE the list with all the questions and the name of the person in charge.
Miss Caro

Francesca: What is the situation of dog fighting in Lima Peru?
What other problems link directly or indirectly to animal abuse?
What laws do we have in Lima Peru to protect Animals?
What is the root cause of animal abuse?

Paula: How does animal abuse affect us?
Why do animals become endangered?
What is happening with marine otters in Lima?
Why do people abuse animals?

Nicolas: What is animal abuse?
What is the situation with bullfighting?
How can we solve some types of animal abuse?

Marcelo: What is the most endangered animal in peru? Why is it endangered?
Why do people take animals from their habitats?
What is the situation of animal abuse today?



What is the situation of animal abuse now? (Nicolas)

1*Illegal animal traffic

2*cock fights

3*bull fighting

4*dog fights

5*mistreated house pets

6*horse races

7*killing animals for fur

8*pollution on animal habitats

9*mistreated circus animals

10*animal abandonment

11*leg hold traps

12*slaughter house practices

13*hunting of confined animals

14*shelters using inhumane methods of killing

15*experiments tested on animals

16*treatment of downed animals


*summary/reflection

1).When people take protected animals from their habitats and sell them for very high prices. 2). When people train roosters to fight other roosters and make a show of it. 3). There is a man with a red cape that stabs and kills a bull. At the end they kill the poor animal.
5). When people do not give the adequate care to their pets. For example when they hit them, make them starve, or don’t give them shelter. 7). When people kill animals and skin them to make products with their fur. 9). When the people in the circus keep animals in bad conditions. 10). When people buy animals and leave them on the streets or kick them out of their house. 11). A type of hunting in which animals are caught in traps that make them suffer and slowly kill them. 13).When a person goes into a protected area and hunts the endangered species that live there. 14). When shelters use methods of killing that inflict a lot of pain to the animals



How can we solve some types of animal abuse?(Nicolas)

Where are the Fact Fragments of these questions?

(Bullfighting, shelters using inhumane methods of killing, hunting of confined animals, killing animals for fur)
1). Bullfighting
Bull fighting occurs in Lima, Peru because it is one of the few countries where it is not illegal and not considered animal abuse.

Before a bullfights, people stab a bull so it is weak, and mad, then during the bullfights people come with horses, swords, and spears and they stab,a and cut the bull. When the bullfight is over, they kill the bull and cut off its ears and tail.
To stop Bullfighting, I can…

Protest with posters in front of a bullfighting stadium or while watching a bullfight, I can hold a poster that says: “STOP BULLFIGHTS YOU ARE JUST HURTING THE BULLS” that way people can realize that they enjoy seeing a bull suffer and die, and that they are paying to see it.
Make a video at school that shows how the bulls are being abused and mistreated and how and why they can stop it.
I can make a poster so people realize how bad bullfighting is, and also I can list some ways that they can help stop it.

2). Shelters using inhumane methods of killing
Shelters using inhumane methods does not happen Peru because I found a lot of animal shelters in Lima but none of them has been denounced of using inhumane methods of killing, plus, they try really hard to find a home for the animals that they find on the street.
Shelters using inhumane methods of killing is a problem because they make the animal suffer while it's being killed. Does this exist in Lima?
To stop shelters using inhumane methods of killing, I can…
Show shelters methods of killing that aren’t painful.
Make posters at school saying: “HELP AN ANIMAL, SAVE A LIFE, GO ADOPT AN ANIMAL AT ---------- THE LOCATION IS:---------------------- so people will go, and adopt a pet before it is killed.

3). Hunting of confined animals
Hunting of confined animals is not a problem in Lima, but in Peru it is. Because people don't care if the animals they hunt are endangered they just do it. In a page I found some specific species that I saw were endangered: coto monkey of Tumbes, Guanaco, Oso de anteojos, Pinchaque, Otter of the northeast, Flamenco, Guacamayo, and the Humboldt Penguin, Tumbes Crocodile, Charapa (turtle).

When a person goes into a protected are at and hunts the endangered species that live there
To stop hunting of confined animals, I can…
Show people the consequences they will encounter if they do it like: Go to jail, Pay a fine, and worst of all… the animal may become extinct.
Tell people what to do/who to call if they see someone hunting a confined animal.
Does this exist in Lima?


4). Killing animals for their fur

Killing animals for their fur is not a problem in Lima, but in Peru it is. The Vicuna became endangered because people killed them for their fur, also the Chinchilla is endangered for the same, exact reason.

When people kill animals and skin them to make products with their fur.
To stop killing animals for their fur, I can…
Shoe people what will happen to the world if they keep buying fur purses, coats, etc.: animals can get endangered and extinct, show them that the fur they are buying is or may be from an endangered animal.
Show them how they kill the animals for their fur.
Show them how many animals are killed for just ONE coat.
Does this exist in Lima?

What is the situation of animal abuse today? (Marcelo)

I contacted Fernando Moreno from Grupo Caridad (a local group that helps animals) and he told me this:

The situation of animal abuse its divided in 5 parts: experimentation, company animals, wildlife, feeding and entertainment.

Generally, the situation worsens in many ways specially because the world population grows. The animal activists are getting stronger and we have accomplished more laws forbidding cruel practices in the world, regulations for the well being of animals and a great impact on media and social networks on this cases.


You need to find out what each of these mean and choose the one you guys are most interested in.

How does animals affect us? (Paula)
  • partnership between humans and animals exists stone age
  • service and assistance people disabilities
  • pets for therapy
  • help acomplish tasks

The partnership between humans and animals exists since the stone age, like 9,000 years ago. Pets, usually dogs, provide service and assist people with dissabilities. Pets also help acomplish tasks to fire fighters, police, and people with disabilities. Like pets are so close to humans there even exists pets for therapy.


Why do people abuse animals? (Paula)
  • to release their anger
  • 2 types of abusing animals
  • no food, water, or shelter
  • movie companies do not care about the animals, just about the money
  • Form showing cruelty
  • not related to human
  • circuses, zoos get money

Abusing animals is a form of showing cruelty, they think animals are not related to humans. People that abuse animals don’t care about what animals feel. Circuses and some zoos don’t care about the animals just about the money they get. Some humans just have pets to release their anger with them.There are 2 types of abusing animals. One is by not giving them the necessary resources to survive and the other is to kick them, hit them, and punch them. Some movie companies that work with pets don´t care about the pet they just care about the money they make and how famous they are.

What laws do we have in Lima-Peru to protect animals? (Francesca)
  • Law Nº 27265 protects pets, wild animals in captivity.
  • Law Nº 27596 regulates legal regime of dogs.
  • Law Nº 27308 forestry – wildlife.

In Peru we have mainly three laws to protect animals. The first one tells us how to treat domestic pets and also wild animals in captivity. This law is very important for the circus and the zoo business. The next one takes care of how dogs should be treated and forbids dog fighting. Finally, the last one takes care of our forests and wildlife in them.

Is there anything referred to bullfights?

Why do animals become endangered (Paula)
  • destroy forests, deserts, oceans
  • no home force them leave where they will die
  • oil spills in water
  • Over hunted

Humans destroy forests and deserts to make houses or buildings. Humans destroy oceans by polluting them and killing marine animals. When people build houses in the forests they force animals to leave and they die because they are not adapted to the different environment. Humans hunt too many sharks, fishes, seals, tigers, lions, bulls etc.


Why do people take animals from their natural habitats? (Marcelo)
  • 80% of animals die before they get to the destination.
  • There is a A.T.F.F.S (Administration Tecnica Forestall Founa Silvestre)
  • Not enough police
  • Laws against animal abuse

All the captured animals from the Amazon are transported to central Lima. Out of 100 , 80 die before arriving to their destination. The A.T.F.F.S (a group of cops that are in the Amazon) tries to control the trafficking of wild animals in Peru. There are only fifty cops operating for both Lima and Callao. There are laws in Lima and Callao against capturing, transporting, selling and owning wild animals of the Amazon. If some wild animals survive the transportation then people will sell them and when they are sold then they can carry many diseases and harm the people who bought them. People want to take animals from their habitats because they think that people will pay more because the animals are from the real habitats.

This information DOES NOT answer your question.


What is the most endangered animal in Peru? Why is it endangered?(Marcelo)

There are two reasons why animals are becoming endangered and they are both related to human activity:
1. People hunt the wild animals excessively. Examples of these practices are:
  • Fishing a specific variety of fish may cause its extinction
  • Hunting endangered animals for fur and leather
  • Hunting animals for animal parts (for medicine or science)
  • Not obeying the fishing laws
  • Lack of education in the population

2. People destroy their habitats. Different ways of destroying the wild animal's habitat are:
  • Cutting down trees
  • dropping toxic waste in rivers, lakes and ocean
  • polluting the air
  • polluting the water
  • burning forests
  • introducing exotic species that don't belong to a specific habitat
  • new construction around wild habitats

After doing my research I learned that the Condor is the most endangered animal in Peru because they have a low reproductive rate as they only lay eggs every other year. The condor is also hunt for its parts that are used in medicinal remedies. Air and water pollution are also affecting their environment.

What other problems link directly or indirectly to animal abuse? (Francesca)

Animal abuse is linked directly to these issues:


Medicines: Medical scientific investigation
Food market: Farm raised - cheaper food market
Warfare: Used in wars, dogs, horses, dolphins basically.
Entertainment: Bullfighting, circuses, cock fighting,dog fighting, zoos.
Clothing: Animal’s fur - high fashion world, also in native communities.

Animals are used for medical and scientific investigation. Animals are also raised in farms in order to produce a cheaper cost for the food market. Animals are used in wars, specially working animals such as dogs, horses and dolphins. Dolphins are used by the U.S. Navy to detect enemy sea mines. Animals are used for entertainment purposes, such as bullfighting, cock fighting, dog fights, zoos, and circuses. Animal fur is used for clothing in the high fashion world but also in tribal communities.

Animal abuse is linked indirectly to these issues:

Cultural differences: Animal abuse depends of culture. Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism condemn eating meat, populations starve to death before eating cow. McDonalds created soy hamburgers for these markets.
Psychological disorders: People cruel with animals can have serious psychological problems.

Animal abuse is seen in different ways, depending of the culture. For example, in India, because of religions like Buddhism, Hinduism and Jainism that condemn the eating of meat, populations could starve to death before eating a cow. McDonalds had to create special soy hamburgers for the Indian market. As for psychological disorders, people that are frequently cruel against animals may present serious psychological problems.


What is the situation with bullfighting?(nicolas)
*Bull = not aggresive animal
*Reason he is angry = he has been abused for past 2 days
*Spectators see: = not healthy bull
*Half blinded, weakened, mentally destroyed bull
*Wet newspapers in ears, vaseline on eyes, cotton stuffed into nose
Strong caustic solution rubbed on legs to loose balance
*Also, keeps him from lying down
*Drugs on feed to slow him down
*The purpose is to disorientate him


The bull is not an aggressive animal. The reason he is angry and tries to attack the matador is because he has been horribly abused for the past 2 days. What the audience sees is not a normal, healthy bull. It’s a weakened, half blinded bull. The bull has wet newspapers stuffed into his ears, Vaseline is rubbed into his eyes to blur his vision, cotton is stuffed up his nostrils to cut off his respiration, drugs are applied to slow him down and strong laxatives are added to his feed to incapacitate him even more. Then he is kept in a dark box for a couple days before he faces the ring. There is a man with a red cape that stabs and kills a bull. They stab it with spears, cut it with swords, and at the end they even kill the poor animal. We can find bullfights in Spain, Peru and many other countries. People pay to see persons stab and cut a bull, they even applause. Bullfighting has to stop because we have to learn to treat all animals like we would like to be treated. Bulls are innocent; they don’t deserve to suffer.


What is the situation of dog fighting in Lima Peru? (Francesca)
  • Law Nº 27596 regulates legal status of dogs-Peru
  • illegal in Peru
  • Raised to be aggressive
  • Illegal take dangerous dogs public shows
  • Law not apply police, military, guide, firemen dogs
  • Groups organize illegal dog fights-money
  • Like Pitbull trained to be aggressive- harm other dogs

The law Nº 27596 regulates the legal status of dogs in the country, it is a law against dog fighting in Peru. It is not permitted to raise dogs to be aggressive, or to take them to public performances or shows. This does not apply to the Police, Military, Fireman or guide dogs. However, many groups organize illegal dog fights for money. In these illegal events, people bet on dogs and harm them with sharp objects so they can get more aggressive. Dogs like Pitbulls are trained to be very harmful and raised to kill. Most of these groups organize through the Internet.


What is happening with marine otters in Lima-Peru (Paula)
  • Endangered
  • protected by law
  • greater danger
  • constant illegal dynamite fishing
  • loosing their habitats and food
  • fishing near the rocky shore

In Peru, the marine otter is also endangered and therefore protected by law. However there is only one area in Paracas national reserve where otters are protected. It appeared that the otter population is in greater danger than in other areas in the world. When fishermen use illegal dynamite for fishing hey kill many sea animals including sea otter. The main threads of marine otters are loosing their homes and their food. In Lima there is a high number of fishermen that climb down the cliff with ropes to get the best fishing spots. Another common problem is that fishing boats are using fishing nets near the rocky shore.
What is the root cause of animal abuse? (Francesca)
  • Psychological problems.
  • Violence between people becomes violence to animals.
  • Little connection with nature.
  • Cruel traditions – bullfighting, dog fighting, cock fighting etc.
  • Humans feel superior to animals.
  • Humans feed animal meet for centuries.
  • Humans think animals feel differently to them.
  • Humans think they own animals.
  • Humans think they can use animals for whatever they want (wars, fashion, food, etc.)
  • Scientists test experiments in animals before testing them in humans.
  • Little empathy for nature/animals.

Animal abuse has many root causes that I consider important. The first cause is the violence between us. Many people could act out the anger they can feel inside and abuse animals because of that. Also, life is now less connected to nature and animal life. This makes it more difficult for people to have empathy with animals. This means we have lost the ability to imagine what animals could feel if we treat them badly. There are also cruel traditions like bullfighting, cock fighting dog fighting, etc.

However, I believe that the principal root cause of animal abuse is that humans have felt superior to animals for centuries. We have come to think that we can use animals for whatever we want without any respect for them. Scientific experiments with animals are a proof of these ideas.

This is great information! Congratulations. Now you need to narrow down your topic. Which problem would you like to solve?